Yes, maybe in time Donna could have been embraced by the audience.
But there was little commonality b/w the two actresses and the characters. It was just too big a mountain to climb. especially when there was that possibility of Barbara returning.
So Susan had plans for a Ray/Donna spin off. Maybe they become born again and fight to maintain Christian values on a weekly basis.
Donna Of 'Dallas' Dons A New Hairdo
By Ian Banner HOLLYWOOD - Faithful, trusty Donna Krebbs of "Dallas" has been presented on screen as a classic no-frills beauty since she debuted on the hit CBS series in 1979. And that's why producer Leonard Katzman had a conniption when Susan Howard reported for work with a glamorous new hairdo. But like her character. Miss Howard can dig her heels in deep when she knows she's right. So it looks like the new look on Ray Krebb's wife is permanent. "I'd had the old hairdo for so many years that even I was scared to mess with it," says Miss Howard, "but I told the producer what I told myself, people change, and this was a change I needed for Susan's sake, not for Donna's. "The funny thing is I have had people complimenting me on my glamorous, elegant new wardrobe, but I am still wearing the same clothes I always have. The costumes are outside my control, but my hair's my own."
So look for more changes from both Susan and Donna: Miss Howard's one regret about her role on "Dallas" is that it doesn't make as heavy a demand on her talents as her previous series, "Petrocelli." She says she wouldn't be sorry if her involvement with the Friday night series is over when her contract ends after the 1984- 1985 season. But that doesn't mean she wants to see the last of Donna. Miss Howard has written the opening episode and an entire season's summary of proposed plot developments for a spinoff series that would take Ray and Donna away from outhfork and out on their own. "I'd like to be involved with a show that doesn't have such a large cast," says Miss Howard. "But I love the character I'm playing and the production company is terrific, so a spinoff for me and Steve Kanaly would be the ideal solution. It's too soon to be "They know both Steve and I would like to go on to something new, but next year is still a long way off," she says. "Steve and I have a close working relationship and we have discussed the whole thing every step of the way."
In the meantime, she is happy to concentrate on Donna and avoid the temptation to grab guest shots on other TV shows just for the sake of doing something different "I didn't take just anything when I was starving," says Miss Howard, "so I'm certainly not going to do it now. There are only two current shows I like — 'Boone' and 'The Mississippi' — and I'd do them for nothing. But so far, nobody's asked."
By
Paul Raven ·
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